Debbie’s Challenge #2 Results

VICTORY! Double fist pumps to the Max!! Turns out that having a plan and taking your time actually creates a better result…who knew?!?
I started this Challenge by purchasing a $4 hardcover book from Dollarama and a $3 block of DAS clay..everything else I had in the Craft and Nail Tech boxes in my basement.
I wanted to create a Spellbook that had spooky Witches Fingers instead of skeletons (can they read with no eyeballs? I don’t think so) and a Hallowe’en-flavoured spell. After a search on Pinterest, I found this well-known poem and thought it was perfect!
This project took me quite a while to make because of drying time – which broke up the project into do-able 1-hour creating chunks, exactly how I like to operate!
Creating the fingers was a little tricky for me, taking more time to shape in a way that would ‘hold’ the book but not interfere with reading the words. I used my hands as a template for size, forming crude fingers from wire as a base for the clay and then shaping. Once they were formed and dry, I painted them greyish with touches of brown and a watered-down green wash.
I created the nails with tips and gel nail colours and hot-glued them to each finger.
Dipping the hardcover book into a pan with very strong tea and then curling up the pages created the ‘old and used’ look that I had in mind. Fortunately, there were empty pages at the back of the book that, once dry, I could trace the poem in the font that I liked and then glue them into place. A few spider stickers and it was done!
Creating this Spellbook for Hallowe’en inspired me to keep going - I made two more signs and ‘poisoned’ apples to work with my Witch’s House theme. At the start of this project I was seriously doubting my creative skills, (the Autumn Cake from Challenge 1 kicked my butt!!) however….I think I have redeemed myself Here's my Spellbook set up!